


An Honest Conversation

by MostlyVoidPartiallySnark



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: FUCK, Gen, I guess I wanted to write something where two people are honest about themselves, I mean not much really happens, I tagged this as Ignoct, I'm pretty sure I won't with certain people, M/M, Real Talk Motherfucker, SHIT NOW I GOTTA COME UP WITH A SUMMARY, Sexuality, The Boys Get Honest, and (b) we deserve healthy platonic relationships between queer people dammit, and it's almost 9 PM on the last day of June, and it's okay, and knowing that...it's hard, and my beta never got back to me on it, anyway, aw shit now I gotta come up with a real title, because (a) you can pry my bi!Gladio and gay!Ignis headcanons from my cold dead hands, because Iggy got it BAD for the prince, because too many people don't have that, but I also wanted to publish it for Pride, but it's more him talking about it than anything actually happening between them, dammit, honestly this was...kinda therapeutic?, hoo boy this is off to a good start, it's two dudes talking about their sexuality, move along, no smut here, people I'm very close with, side note: I wrote this weeks ago but I wanted it beta'd first, so I wrote this, so here you go, that's basically it, uuh I'm not real sure how to tag this tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-07-01
Packaged: 2019-05-31 13:37:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15120533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MostlyVoidPartiallySnark/pseuds/MostlyVoidPartiallySnark
Summary: Tact may not be Gladio's strong suit, but sometimes a straightforward approach pays off. Rated for language.





	An Honest Conversation

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this for Pride, but also for myself. I only hope I've done these characters justice.  
> Anyway here's Wonderwall I mean the fic.

The fire burned low, snapping softly in the starlight. The rocky landscape of Ravatogh spread below the haven, the moon brushing its sharp edges with silver. Constellations danced ever so slowly overhead; they looked closer than usual here, so high up and so far away from the lights of civilization. It was quiet, peaceful, and breathtakingly beautiful.

Ignis sat away from the fire, just on the edge of the shadows, his back propped against a rare smooth patch of the rocky wall of the volcano. The lingering heat soothed his aching muscles as he nursed his evening cup of Ebony. With Noct and Prompto both asleep already and Gladio off doing whatever it was he'd wandered off to do, the rare moment of solitude was a balm to his soul.

Not quite against his will, he found his absent gaze drawn to the tent that held his sleeping companions. A soft but familiar snuffle, just on the edge of a snore, floated through the still air and brought a small, fond smile to his lips. Noct had been doing that ever since he was a child, never truly snoring, but he'd never been a silent sleeper. As many naps as he took – at least when he could get away with it – his sleeping habits were more familiar to Ignis than his own.

The crunch of gravel heralded Gladio’s return. He grunted a greeting as he stepped into the firelight, which Ignis returned by raising his mug in salute, before plopping down on the other side of the fire, eschewing the chairs.

The two men were silent for a long while, each comfortable with the other's presence. Gladio watched the flames dance and grow slowly dimmer; Ignis kept his eyes on the tent, not truly watching but simply letting his gaze wander while his busy mind turned. The stillness of the night and the lingering dry heat seemed to invite the companionable quiet, and neither of them was one to decline.

Gladio shifted once, the sound small in the night. Still, it was enough to disrupt the spell that had fallen over their little campsite, though his voice was still low when he murmured, “Y'know, I can hear you pining from over here.”

Ignis started with a rush of guilt, confusion hard on its heels. “What?” he managed, his own voice just as soft.

Gladio arched a brow at him across the fire. “Don’t you ‘what’ me, Iggy,” he said, his face hinting at a smirk. “I’m not stupid. I know a man hopelessly in love when I see one.”

Ignis tightened his grip on his mug, just barely. “I’m really not sure where you’re going with this,” he insisted. “There’s no one for whom to pine, even if I were prone to do so.”

Gladio snorted. “Please.” He jerked a thumb toward the tent, his eyes positively sparkling. “There’s only two people in that tent who could be causing a look like that, and I’m pretty sure it ain’t Prompto.” Ignis shook his head and opened his mouth to protest, but Gladio leaned forward and said, even softer now, “You look at Noct like that and you _really_ expect me to believe you’re straight?”

For just a moment, Ignis thought about denying it. Then his shoulders slumped in a sigh and a rueful smile curled his lips. "Am I really that obvious?" he murmured.

Gladio chuckled. "Maybe not to most people," he admitted. "But how long have we known each other now?"

"A fair point," Ignis acknowledged with a nod, his smile growing.

"And let's face it, Noct ain't exactly the most observant one on this godsforsaken rock."

This wrung a chuckle from Ignis. "No, that he isn't," he agreed. Still, there was a fond undercurrent to the words, and he glanced back toward the tent with a newly open softness to his expression.

Across the fire, Gladio shook his head and leaned back on his palms and turned his gaze skyward. "Y'know," he said as if to the stars, "I dated a guy kinda like you once."

His quiet words were as casual as if he'd been remarking on the weather, yet they wrenched Ignis' attention back toward him. "Oh, really?" he said, eyebrows raised. "I thought you were the ladies' man."

The grin Gladio shot him was nothing short of cocky. "Why not both?" he replied, to which Ignis had no argument.

"I can't say I agree," he admitted, "but I do see." He gestured with his mug, nearly forgotten in his hand. "Continue."

Gladio shook his head, still smiling, and returned his attention to the distant stars. "Ah, it's nothin', really," he said. "Just been thinkin' about him some lately. He really was a lot like you in some ways," he added, as if an afterthought. "Smart. Not cocky, but…self-assured. And _super_ picky about the way his sleeves were rolled up." This with a teasing smirk.

"I'm not _that_ bad." Ignis' protest was weakened by his own grin. "I simply prefer to keep myself looking sharp."

Gladio snorted. "Please. I always thought you liked dudes, but then I saw you in a button-up shirt."

" _Gladio._ "

"Hey, I call it like I see it."

Silence reigned over the camp once again, different now but no less easy than before. Ignis worked at the last of his coffee – it was lukewarm at best now, but it would be criminal to waste it – while Gladio picked out new constellations from random groupings of stars. Despite their night of confessions, a companionable mood still lay over the pair as they each pondered their own thoughts.

Ignis was the one to break the silence this time. "I can't help but wonder," he began as he set down his now-empty cup, "whether you compared me to your ex solely as a means to confess to being bisexual."

Gladio chuckled softly. "Guess I wasn't too subtle about that, huh?"

Ignis shook his head. "How _do_ you manage?" he murmured, almost to himself.

But Gladio clearly heard him, because he shrugged one shoulder. "Oh, I get bi," he said, unable to keep the smirk off his face. Ignis groaned, and the smirk became a wicked grin. "C'mon, you set me up for that one."

"I'm going to pretend you didn't say that," Ignis said primly. Then a thought occurred to him, and he furrowed his brows as he asked, "Did your father know?"

Gladio's grin faded to an almost pained smile, and he shook his head. "Nah. Never really came up. He wouldn't have gotten it anyway."

There was a lifetime of pain buried in his words, but Ignis sensed now was not the time to dig it up. Maybe someday, or maybe never, but certainly not now. So he simply murmured a sympathetic "I understand," and his own voice made clear that it wasn't just empty condolences.

They were quiet for a moment longer before Gladio sighed, rose, and stretched luxuriously. "Well, this has been fun," he said as he began shuffling toward the tent, "but I'm beat. Punching a mountain into submission'll take it outta ya."

Ignis snickered, but he couldn't disagree with the description of the day they'd had. "I'll be in momentarily," he said as Gladio passed, and he raised a hand in acknowledgement.

He hadn't intended to say anything else, but just as Gladio was lifting the tent flap, Ignis murmured, "You won't say anything to Noct, will you?"

It took some effort to meet Gladio's eyes, but when he did he found them full of empathy. "Nah," he said, even more softly now that the tent was open. "I don't out people like that. Dick move, yannow?"

Ignis nodded. "Right. Of course."

"And to be fair," Gladio added, a hint of sheepishness coloring his expressive face, "I don't normally push people like that either. But, man…" He shook his head and smiled. "You looked like a lost puppy or something."

"Now I _know_ you're exaggerating," Ignis said with a roll of his eyes. "But…" He swallowed, unsure where the sudden emotion was coming from. "Thank you," he whispered, and now he really wasn't able to meet Gladio's eye. "I…I'm glad someone knows."

Had he looked up from the nearly dead fire, he would have found Gladio to be the picture of understanding. "Yeah," he murmured, almost to himself. "Me too."

Then the haven was silent again, not even the snapping of a fire disturbing the still air. The stars had shifted ever so slightly in their slow, eternal dance; the shadows cast by the moonlight had grown just a bit longer. The silver-kissed night air hissed through the rocks, whispering two men's secrets where no ears would hear them.

And when morning came, though nothing had really changed, for them, the world felt new.


End file.
